Grant will help welfare recipients make leap into workforce

Published 7:00 pm, Wednesday, May 22, 2002

A $114,554 self-sufficiency grant has been given to the San Jacinto College District, Orius Corp./Network Cabling Division and Staffing Solutions for job training for people on welfare.

The Texas Workforce Commission approved the application of the three organizations and presented SJCD with the grant, which is funded by their general revenue fund.

"The only people that are going to be eligible for it are welfare recipients," Larry Jones, director of communications of the Texas Workforce Commission, said. "This will get them off public assistance, and that's why we call it a self-sufficiency fund."

Money from the grant will go directly to the college and will be used to train 40 people for jobs at Orius and Staffing Solutions.

The next session begins June 3 and runs through Aug. 27, and classes are scheduled for Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 - 10 p.m.

Although the class is available free of charge for those who qualify, there is currently no one enrolled. Gayle Gallaher, program director for economic development for SJCD, said she is trying to recruit people for training by advertising in local newspapers and distributing flyers.

People who do not qualify to take the class free of charge because they are not on government assistance may still enroll, but they will be responsible for the cost of the class. Anyone interested in the class should contact SJCD at (281) 476-1838.

Those who complete training are eligible for jobs at the two companies that pay $9 an hour. However, those who undergo training are not necessarily guaranteed a job with either of the two businesses.

"We don't guarantee employment, but our business partners have agreed to interview graduates of the program for any open position," Gallaher said.

Gallaher said that even if graduates of the program are not hired by Orius or Staffing Solutions, they are qualified to work for other companies as well.

"We have job placement here on campus, and we can place students beyond companies that participated with us on the grant application," she said. "That's the whole goal of the self-sufficiency fund award, to provide training to persons that are on assistance so they can have better employment opportunities and become self-sufficient."

Jones said that although people on welfare will benefit from this grant because they will gain skills to make them self-sufficient, the college, businesses and the overall economy will also benefit from the grant.

"The employer gains because he or she gets a custom trained work force," Jones said. "The college gains because they can build up an infrastructure. They hire a professor, set up a lab and develop a curriculum. We hope these things will continue after the grant is gone. Lastly, the community wins because this is economic development."

The Texas Workforce Commission is a government agency that assists people in finding employment. Information on the commission can be found on its Web site at www.texasworkforce.org.